CORACH RAMBLER
Won the Ultima Handicap Chase at Cheltenham in March 2022, a career best. He’ll need to continue to improve, but if he does he could be a real force to be reckoned with in 2023.
NO: 41 | FORM: 4U1-54 | AGE: 9 | WEIGHT: 10-05 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: L. Russell
NOBLE YEATS
Noble Yeats ripped up the form book when he became the first seven-year-old to win the Grand National since Bogskar in 1940.
Ridden by amateur jockey Sam Waley-Cohen, he was a rank outsider going into the race, with odds of 50/1. But he proved his doubters wrong with a gutsy performance. It was an emotional moment for Waley-Cohen, who was riding his last race before retiring.
NO: 4 | FORM: 1-P113 | AGE: 8 | WEIGHT: 11-11 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: E. Mullins
GAILLARD DU MESNIL
There are few things more frustrating for a horse racing fan than watching a horse who always seems to run out steam at the end of a race. Gaillard du Mesnil finished in third place five times from five starts over the big fences. But then he came good at Cheltenham, and finally realised all that promise!
NO: 19 | FORM: 33-213 | AGE: 7 | WEIGHT: 11-00 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: W. Mullins
MR INCREDIBLE
Moved to Willie Mullins in November and was unlucky to be brought down in his first run for the yard. Redeemed himself at Warwick with a second place finish over 3m5f, but refusing to run and pulling up last season still leave question marks.
NO: 44 | FORM: 2RP-B2 | AGE: 7 | WEIGHT: 10-04 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: W. Mullins
CONFLATED
A highly rated chaser from Gordon Elliott, Conflated has just won the Savills Chase at Leopardstown and has sights on both the Ryanair Chase and Gold Cup in the upcoming Cheltenham Festival.
NO: 3 | FORM: 1F2-31 | AGE: 9 | WEIGHT: 11-12 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: G. Elliott
ANY SECOND NOW
After a third-place finish in the 2021 and a second-place finish in the 2022 Grand National, many are wondering if this is finally his year to take first.
NO: 2 | FORM: 612-24 | AGE: 11 | WEIGHT: 11-12 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: T. Walsh
DELTA WORK
Delta Work produced a stunning performance to win the Glenfarclas Chase at Cheltenham in 2022 when he edged out Tiger Roll.
He went to Aintree as a 10/1 shot for the National, but was bested on the day, finishing third. However, he showed that he has the stamina to be a leading player in the race and it would be no surprise to see him back for another crack in 2023.
NO: 11 | FORM: 613-13 | AGE: 10 | WEIGHT: 11-04 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: G. Elliott
GALVIN
Fourth in the Gold Cup last year, he’s had mixed form this season, winning a Grade 3 at Punchestown but languished towards the rear in both of his Grade 1 starts. Also likely to get a very big weight which won’t help his chances.
NO: 5 | FORM: 4-6146 | AGE: 9 | WEIGHT: 11-11 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: G. Elliott
LONGHOUSE POET
Longhouse Poet had a great showing in the most recent Grand National, coming in at 6th place. With another year of experience under his belt, this horse could very well be a top contender.
NO: 18 | FORM: 76-P16 | AGE: 9 | WEIGHT: 11-00 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: M. Brassil
LE MILOS
Has started the season really well winning first at Bangor and then again in the Coral Gold Cup at Newbury. With both races at 3 miles or further, this young horse is shaping up to be quite the chaser.
NO: 23 | FORM: 2114-11 | AGE: 8 | WEIGHT: 10-11 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: D. Skelton
LIFETIME AMBITION
Only once in his career has this runner been out of the top four. Was 4th in the Grand Sefton at Aintree in November and has been a steady placer. However, rarely gets tested 3m so stamina could be an issue.
NO: 13 | FORM: -24234 | AGE: 8 | WEIGHT: 11-03 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: J. Harrington
CAPODANNO
Usually 7-year-olds don’t fair well in the Grand National. However, in 2022, a seven-year-old bay named Noble Yeats shocked the racing world by taking the top prize. Could another young horse be ready to repeat this feat?
NO: 10 | FORM: 12U4-1 | AGE: 7 | WEIGHT: 11-05 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: W. Mullins
THE BIG DOG
Has made a great start to the season winning back-to-back races at Limerick (Munster National) and Navan (Troytown Handicap Chase). Ticks a lot of boxes for the 2023 Grand National.
NO: 9 | FORM: 6-113F | AGE: 10 | WEIGHT: 11-05 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: P. Fahey
VANILLIER
A decent chaser but not having a terrific season falling and coming last in two of his four races since November.
NO: 38 | FORM: -636F2 | AGE: 8 | WEIGHT: 10-06 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: G. Cromwell
QUICK WAVE
Winner the last time out at Haydock in the Grand National Trial, continuing his good seasonal form (except for pulling up in the Welsh National) and could be one to keep an eye on for the each way bet.
NO: 25 | FORM: /1-1P1 | AGE: 10 | WEIGHT: 10-11 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: V. Williams
OUR POWER
A winner last time out at Kempton, Our Power has two wins under his belt this season. Also has options at Cheltenham so may go there first.
NO: 55 | FORM: 135-11 | AGE: 8 | WEIGHT: 10-00 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: S. Thomas
AIN’T THAT A SHAME
Sqeaked into the top 40 after the weights but with no wins from six chase starts has an uphill battle in the 2023 Grand National.
NO: 40 | FORM: 220-24 | AGE: 9 | WEIGHT: 10-05 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: H. De Bromhead
FURY ROAD
A very highly rated chaser who has won two and placed in another six of his nine chase starts. More likely to go to Cheltenham and may skip Aintree if lumbered with a hefty weight.
NO: 8 | FORM: 2-3133 | AGE: 9 | WEIGHT: 11-06 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: G. Elliott
LORD LARIAT
Lord Lariat was a surprising winner of the Irish Grand National in 2022, coming in at 40/1 odds despite never before running at the 3m5f distance. It was a stunning upset and one that has many people wondering if Lord Lariat could be a contender for the 2023 Grand National. If form continues, could be one to watch.
NO: 42 | FORM: 651-46 | AGE: 8 | WEIGHT: 10-05 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: D. McLoughlin
DARASSO
Darasso is yet to be tested beyond three miles, so that is a major concern. This means that we don’t really know how he will fare over the longer Grand National distance. Nevertheless, he has scored in seven of his ten chase starts, so he does show potential.
NO: 20 | FORM: 723315 | AGE: 10 | WEIGHT: 10-13 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: J.P. O’Brien
CAREFULLY SELECTED
Was out of commission for nearly three years before returning this season. First race was a bit of a warm up before he headed to Gowran Park to win the Goffs Thyestes but is it enough for the Grand National 2023?
NO: 15 | FORM: 11U/01 | AGE: 11 | WEIGHT: 11-01 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: W. Mullins
REMASTERED
Has run a mixture of hurdles and chases this season, winning in both and boosting his Official Rating in the process so likely to get a decent weight for the 2023 Grand National.
NO: 29 | FORM: 9-121P | AGE: 10 | WEIGHT: 10-10 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: D. Pipe
ROYALE PAGAILLE
A great chaser and one of the highest rated in the 2023 Grand National. Also has one eye on the Gold Cup so a trip to Aintree could go either way.
NO: 6 | FORM: 1255-2 | AGE: 9 | WEIGHT: 11-08 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: V. Williams
THE BIG BREAKAWAY
The Big Breakaway will need a big slice of luck to make an impression in this race. Lightly raced in the past two seasons, The Big Breakaway will be up against some more experienced horses in this race.
NO: 28 | FORM: 23P-22 | AGE: 8 | WEIGHT: 10-10 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: J. Tizzard
CAPE GENTLEMAN
He’s not a fluent jumper and fell second last time out, which isn’t the ideal prep for Aintree. Nothing in his form suggests he has chance here. Big odds reflect the big risk.
NO: 32 | FORM: -92F30 | AGE: 7 | WEIGHT: 10-08 | JOCKEY: UNKNOWN | TRAINER: E. Mullins
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Ratings Explained
We give each horse a rating based on how closely it matches the trends and statistics of past Grand National winners.
Unlikely to mount a serious challenge.
Could place with a slice of luck.
A strong eachway chance and could even win it.
Ante post odds listed on this page are taken from Paddy Power on 20/03/2023. Check the odds with your Bookmaker before placing a bet as fluctuations can occur. Full Terms and Conditions for the promotional bet offers can be found on the respective websites – please read them before signing up.
Every year a maximum of 40 runners line up at the start of the Aintree Grand National and 600 million people worldwide tune in to watch them tackle the 30 notoriously difficult fences in a bid to put themselves into the history books. But how do those particular runners and riders make it to Grand National day?
A horse will be entered into the Grand National 2023 if it meets the minimum criteria for qualification and the owner and trainer feel that their horse is capable of handling the race.
Not all horses are suited to the long Aintree course or have the necessary jumping ability. Even if a horse gets entered, that doesn’t guarantee a place at the starting line as frequently over 100 get entered but there is a maximum field of just 40 for the race.
The race is open to horses aged seven and upwards that have been placed first, second, third or fourth in a chase of three miles or more and who are allotted a rating of at least 125 by the BHA Handicapper.
The entry date for the race is always at the end of January or the beginning of February depending on the date of the race in April.
The names and numbers are announced by the BHA (British Horseracing Authority) the following day.
Number Of Entries
- 2023 – 85
- 2022 – 107
- 2021 – 106
- 2020 – 105 (cancelled)
- 2019 – 112
- 2018 – 105
- 2017 – 110
- 2016 – 126
- 2015 – 98
The BHA Head Of Handicapping then takes the list of entries and frames the weights.
In other words, he decides which runners will carry the heaviest weights and which will carry the least. The handicap system is designed to give every horse a fair chance of winning the race, good horses will carry more weight than those perceived to have less ability.
The maximum weight any horse can carry in the Grand National will be 11st 10lbs and the minimum is 10st. Each runner’s weight will be largely determined by their OR (Official Rating) and the higher the rating, the higher the weight.
Although the Grand National is the only race in Britain in which the Handicapper can ignoring the official ratings if he wishes, often to the consternation of owners and trainers.
Horses are then put in descending order from the highest to the lowest weighted and that also determines their race number. The top-weighted horse is number one, second heaviest weighted horse is number two, and so on.
The weights are then announced, and from then on a series of ‘Declaration Stages’ or ‘Forfeit Stages’ take place.
At each of these stages, potential Grand National Runners can be withdrawn from the proceedings by their trainers and as they are removed and the entries get whittled down so even horses that have not initially made the Top 40 may now do so as entries above them are taken out.
In 2022 there were four different top weighted runners – Conflated, Galvin, Melon and Chris’s Dream. However, as each was withdrawn it left Minella Times carrying top weight.
The very last declaration stage takes place at 10am on the Thursday immediately before Grand National day. This is the point where traditionally the top 40 Grand National runners near completion along with four additional reserves.
Unfortunately in 2020, the race was cancelled and did not go ahead. In 2021, no runners were withdrawn at the very final stage and 40 runners ran.
In 2022, Commodore, School Boy Hours and Romain De Senam took the final spots in the Grand National after Phoenix Way, Easysland and Lord Du Mesnil were declared non-runners.
However, Aintree has announced the reserve system for the Grand National will be discontinued from the 2023 renewal onwards. So now, if a horse is withdrawn at the final stage, it will not be replaced.
Grand National 2022 Top Weight
There has to be a Top Weight for the Grand National and that runner will always carry 11st 10lbs. For 2022 there were two horses that were all allocated top weight. They were Conflated and Galvin, both trained by Gordon Elliott.
However, both horses were withdrawn at the latest declaration stage, along with the next horse in line, Melon. That meant the Chris’s Dream moved into the top spot all horses had their weights increased by 5lbs.
But at the six day declaration stage on April 4th 2022, trainer Henry De Bromhead withdrew Chris’s Dream and that means Minella Times, last year’s Grand National winner, will carry top weight for the 2022 Grand National.
It also means another one pound increase for all runners.
So can Minella Times win carrying top weight in 2022? The truth is that it makes another win very unlikely. It’s not impossible however the last horse to win back-to-back Nationals, while carrying top weight, was Red Rum in 1974.
Even when Tiger Roll won his second National, he was only running off 11-05.
Only connections know if Minella Times can successfully get around the course carrying 21lbs more than the winning weight of 10-03 in 2021.
This season also hasn’t been the greatest for Minella Times. He went to Punchestown in December in the John Durkin Memorial Chase before going to Leopardstown where he pulled up.
Both races were only around 2m5f but he carried top weight in both. It just doesn’t bode well for Aintree.
That said, the 2022 Grand National will be as much about luck as anything else. If the horse finds form on the day and everything goes your way then you have as much chance of winning as any other runner in the race.
2023 Grand National Race Favourite
Two horses are currently vying for the spot of Grand National 2023 favourite. Noble Yeats and Any Second Now are on very short ante-post odds.
Of course anything can happen between now and race day and as the National draws ever closer and excitement intensifies, the odds will change.
Noble Yeats
Noble Yeats defied all the stats when winning this race in 2022. As a 7-year-old novice chaser, he wasn’t really given much a chance going into the race.
Other than the fact that jockey Sam Waley-Cohen had announced he would retire after the race, nobody really took much notice.
Giving the Waley-Cohen family a day to remember – they also own the horse – and trainer Emmet Mullins his first win, he is back again for the 2023 Grand National.
On spectacular form, if he gets a clean run around the course, he really could get that much coveted back-to-back win.
Any Second Now
Any Second Now is still ticking a lot of boxes. He ran and finished in third place in 2022 and went one better in 2022 when he finished in second place.
So the question now is whether or not Any Second Now is destined to always be the bridesmaid and never the bride!
He ran carrying 11-08 last year and technically is one point higher in the Official Ratings so could end up with even more this year.
To put that in context, only one horse, in TWENTY years has won with more than that weight. That was Many Clouds in 2015, carrying 11-09.
But this is a horse that clearly loves Aintree and that counts for a lot in this race. Maybe he can finally do it!
The Jockeys
The criteria for professional or amateur jockeys wanting to take part in the race are very specific.
They must have ridden not less than 15 winners in chases or hurdle races under the Rules of Racing and/or the Rules of the Irish National Hunt Committee and ridden not less than 10 of these winners in chases.
A champion jockey like A.P. McCoy who primarily rode horses for super owner J.P. McManus had his pick of horses in the race before he retired.
Top jockey Barry Geraghty took over as the retained rider for McManus but announced his retirement in July 2020.
Since then Mark Walsh has been named as the retained rider for the McManus horses in Ireland.
The likes of Jack Kennedy and Rachael Blackmore are other top jockeys who can often choose their rides and odds will tumble on any horses chosen by the pair.
Amateur jockeys are now a rarity in the Grand National compared with races early days.
Sam Waley-Cohen is probably the most famous amateur rider in recent years and he enjoys a record over the Aintree fences which is the envy of many a professional. That includes winning the race in 2022!
Other jockeys will usually ride for the yards that retain them or a trainer will engage their services just for this race.
In recent years a number of high-profile jockeys have missed the race due to injuries picked up at the Cheltenham festival which is the last major National Hunt meeting before Aintree.
In 2018, Ruby Walsh suffered a leg fracture and Leighton Aspell suffered a neck injury that put them out of contention for the Grand National.
Bryony Frost experienced the same fate in 2019 when an injury at Cheltenham ruled her out of the National.
Don’t be put off backing a less well-known jockey or even one who has never ridden the course before.
In 2013 jockey Ryan Mania won the race at his first attempt. And David Mullins did the same thing on Rule The World in 2016!
In 2018 we saw a number of jockeys making their debut. They included James Bowen, Bryony Frost, Sam Coltherd, and Rachael Blackmore. Bryony Frost was the best finisher, getting Milansbar to fifth place.
In the Grand National 2019, Lizzie Kelly made her debut on Tea For Two.
By the end of the Grand National 2021, history had been made. Rachael Blackmore and Minella Times ran the perfect race, making Blackmore the first female jockey to ever win the Grand National.
For the 2022 Grand National, there were seven jockey’s making their debut.
They were: Tommy Dowson, Conor Orr, Ricky Doyle, Philip Armson, Jordan Gainford, Hugh Nugent and Harry Bannister.
What Are The Odds?
The odds quoted on any horse in the Grand National represent your potential returns if that horse should win. If a horse is quoted as 10/1 then the 10 figure is the amount you’ll get back from the bookie for a 1 unit stake. In other words, bet £1 and you’ll win £10 back. You’ll also get back the original £1 stake, making a total return of £11.
Who Decides The Odds?
The simple answer is the bookmakers. Initially, bookies will offer odds on all the horses running in the National and the bookmaker is aiming to show a profit on the race regardless of the outcome. In many ways the bookmaker doesn’t care who wins, because if he can get the maths right, he will always come out on top. Although this doesn’t always happen over one race.
In a perfect world the spread of bets on the race would guarantee the bookie a nice profit whoever wins. However, if punters keep placing bets on one horse, let us call this horse ‘Plucky Pete’, at a level disproportionate to other runners then the bookie has built up a potential liability. If ‘Plucky Pete’ wins the race the bookie will lose a fortune and they really don’t like losing! To stop this happening the bookmaker has a couple of options. They can offer bigger odds on other runners and simultaneously shorten the odds on ‘Plucky Pete’ in the hope of attracting bets away from the horse with the big liability and onto other runners. This is why you see the odds fluctuating right up until the off.
So the bookmaker sets the odds initially but the volume of money place on any runner will move the odds right up until the race starts.
What’s An Each Way Bet
The ‘Each Way’ bet works like this… Instead of betting on a horse to come 1st you can make a bet that your horse can finish 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th (some bookmakers payout 5th & 6th places) The each way bet is really two bets in one, a £5 each way bet will cost you £10. You’re betting £5 that a horse wins and £5 that he will finish in one of the places.
Sounds like a good deal? And for the Grand National, it can make sense to back a horse each way over a straight win bet, but remember bookies aren’t registered charities. So to compensate for your increased chances of winning they reduce the quoted odds on the place part of the bet. If a horse comes home 1st you’ll still get the full quoted odds. However, should he only place, you’ll only get a quarter of the quoted odds (some bookmaker pay less than a quarter odds).
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